Ogie Alcasid to Regine Velasquez: You are the greatest singer of this beloved country

As Regine Velasquez capped her career milestone with her “Finale” concert, Ogie Alcasid on Sunday night heaped praises on his wife, calling her the “greatest singer of this beloved country.”

On the second night of her concert series at the SM Mall of Asia Arena, Alcasid was again a special guest where he performed with Velasquez their popular duet, “Ikaw Lamang (Hanggang Ngayon).”

The song was written by Alcasid for Velasquez and became the official soundtrack of Velasquez’s 2002 movie with Richard Gomez.

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After their performance, the singer-songwriter told the Asia’s Songbird that he forgot to tell her something during his appearance on the first night of her three-night concert series.

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“Gusto ko itong sabihin kagabi e, nakalimutan ko lang. I just wanted to say that aside from the fact that I am very proud of you, I want you to know that you are the greatest singer… in our house,” he said in jest, sending Velasquez and the audience to fits of laughter.

“You are the greatest singer of this beloved country of ours,” he then stated.

Alcasid said that while Velasquez has mentioned that this show was her finale, the love of her fans would not end there.

“It’s because of that love that you give them, you give them everything,” he said before giving her a buss, and repeated what he said earlier. “Ladies and gentlemen, the greatest singer of the Philippines, Regine Velasquez!”

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In an emotional pre-taped interview with Velasquez which was flashed on the big screen, she explained why she said that she will no longer mount big-ticket shows like this and will retire some of the songs she popularized over the years because of the changes in her voice.

“Unfortunately I can no longer give justice to these songs. My voice has changed. I need to move on from these songs. I’m ready to let them go. It’s funny that when I decided that this was going to be my last big concert, parang di sya naging mahirap na desisyon,” she said.

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She said her sister Cacai Velasquez, who also served talent manager and business partner, told her to push through with the concert series for her 40th year in the industry.

“But when the poster came out, I cried. Na-hit ako ng reality na, yeah, I forgot I was the one who decided this. I just didn’t realize that this was going to be this difficult. I think in a lot of ways, it is an ending, but this can also be the beginning of something. I’m not the type of person who would say things like I have a good voice, my career was good, even though I worked so hard, kasi nahihiya ako na sabihin, ‘Ang galing ko.’ Nahihiya talaga ako. But you know what, I think it’s okay to say that. I think magaling talaga ako, that I did a really good job,” she said.

Indeed it was an emotional second night, as Velasquez couldn’t help but cry as she was just about to start singing one of her most beloved hit, “You Are My Song,” but the crowd sang along with her until she was able to compose herself onstage.

Another highlight of D2 was when veteran singer Jose Mari Chan made a surprise appearance and performed “Please Be Careful with My Heart,” with Velasquez. She said that this song was very special to her as this opened a lot of doors for her and her musical career.

“This song has always been a special song for me. It became a hit song as soon as it came out. I’m very thankful for this man for choosing me. I want to sing this song, it is my privilege to introduce to you this wonderful, beautiful man,” she said of Chan.

The rest of the night is filled with nostalgia as Velasquez sang some of her most popular classics, while her close friends Donna Cruz and Mikee Cojuangco made a second-night appearance to sing their song, “I Can,” from their movie “Do-Re-Mi.” She said that even though the distance and their busy schedules have made it difficult to see each other, they always made it a point to always touch base with one another on their group chat.

Her son Nate also made an appearance, as well as her nieces and nephews. The P-pop group DNA also made a remake of “her “Urong-Sulong,” which was one of Velasquez earliest hits.

Towards the end of the show, Velasquez sang some of her karaoke hits that she said she would like to rerure, such as, “I Don’t Wanna Miss a Thing,” “Dancing Queen,” “Crazy for You,” and “If Ever You’re In My Arms Again.”

For her finale song, she chose “What Kind of Fool I Am,” as she thanked her fans once more with a deep bow.